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By the end of the century the Steel industry had suffered greatly in the face of global competition and the start of a phase of massive sectoral consolidation was set to continue into the new millennium. Meanwhile the efforts of the Thatcher government meant the coal mining industry had virtually been destroyed, leaving a very different Welsh economy to that which had fuelled the industrial revolution and transformed the entire world.

Wales, however, was to face political upheaval on a scale to match that of the changes in its economy, as the subsequent Labour government promised a referendum for a National Assembly. The proposal was for an Assembly, which would have responsibility for certain limited portfolios (including particularly challenging ones such as Health and Education), something not attempted since a previous referendum (also attempted by a Labour UK Government) was defeated by a margin of 80% in 1979 (Keating 1998).

The national assembly for wales

Following successful referenda on the proposals in Scotland and Wales, the National Assembly for Wales and the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) took over control of affairs including health, education and economic development. Scotland regained its parliament, which it lost in the act of Union in 1707, providing greater control for Scots over their own affairs. This marked a massive political change for the devolved countries and the UK as a whole, marking the greatest constitutional change in what was seen to be an ongoing process of devolution (Keating 1998) since the abolition of the House of Lords veto in 1910 and the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1921 (Morgan 2001).

Since its integration with England in 1536, Wales had long been regarded as being tied more closely with England than its northern Celtic neighbour, despite clear religious and linguistic differences (Keating 1998). This is further reflected by the Welsh Office having only existed since 1965, while Scotland had enjoyed such representation within Westminster since 1885. This is seen, along with a perceived lack of consensus amongst the Welsh people for devolution, as one of the reasons for a lower level of power being devolved to Wales (Salvador and Harding 2005).

The ‘Assembly’ itself is a body that encompasses the legislative functions (National Assembly for Wales) and the executive functions (WAG). The legislature comprises 60 elected members representing constituencies and regions. Much of the power of the Assembly is held by the First Minister who appoints a cabinet of Ministers to hold portfolios including Education, Health, Culture, Local Government, and Economic Development and Transport. This structure is shown in [link] , cited from Salvador and Harding (2005). However, the level of devolved power given to the Assembly is far less than that afforded to Scotland and this is cited by some as a debilitating factor in the Assembly’s ability to deliver economic revival (Cooke and Clifton 2005).

Structure of the National Assembly for Wales, from Salvador and Harding (2005).

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Source:  OpenStax, A study of how a region can lever participation in a global network to accelerate the development of a sustainable technology cluster. OpenStax CNX. Apr 19, 2012 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11417/1.2
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